Hey guys, just got my first taco

Hey guys wanted to introduce myself. I'm a young guy with decent mechanical aptitude. I bought a black 1998 4x4 v6 manual transmission Tacoma. Coming from a 1995 Nissan pickup this truck feels like a luxury vehicle. All tags were removed, but I believe it is a limited edition upon a search I did with the vin number. The truck came with a shell, a winch, and was recently painted. I believe it may need some work because it has oil residue under the body from u joints, transmission, and rear diff. I will also change the valve gasket covers, water belt and timing belt soon. It has 240,000 miles, and the previous owner didn't recall when it was last changed. It had two previous owners before me. The seller being a retired vet who took care of his things, and probably knew a bit more about vehicles than I.

My long term goals for this truck are to fix it up, and hopefully drive it until the wheels fall off. I don't have much money now, but my financial situation should improve greatly in the next few months if things go well. I hope I didn't bite off more than I could chew with this truck. I plan to get the engine and all mechanical parts running sound and sealed. Then I plan to upgrade the suspension, probably to Old Man Emu based on reviews. After that if I haven't sunk too much money into it, I will make it look a little pretty. Nice headlights, aftermarket rims, etc. If the truck really lasts until the engine fails, maybe a swap to a Supra inline 6.

Tell me what you guys thinks. Is it worth fixing up?










Edit: Sorry about blurry pics. I can't take more later if you guys are interested.

 

Welcome!

 

Were in the same boat brother. Newbie too.

 

Its always worth fixing up. From what responses I have gotten thus far. Make sure that thing is mechanically sound first...

 

Yeah, fixing her up is my priority. To fix up everything will end up costing me about 3 grand at the dealership with labor included. Have to replace the seals on the engine, replace the timing belt and water pump, my radiator has a small crack, and I need a new fuel filter. I will also have them replace the spark plugs and wires while they have everything apart. Hopefully, I can save up and have it done soon.

 

Yea, I've gone to the dark-side regarding dealerships and/or maintenance shops in some regards. IF, and only IF, you have a good and trusted dealership or shop in your area (with good local reviews and or known experience) and your truck is in need of more or less basic items, as you have mentioned, then it is sometime better to pay someone else to have the headache. Remember "your time is worth something". I've somehow managed to keep mine well maintained and I can now work off of a halfway decent truck. It doesn't make since to put an exhaust on a 8 cylinder that is only running on 6.... Get it running like it should be. Give yourself a good baseline.

 

Yeah, my priority is to get it running like it should. My dealership has great reviews, and I spoke to the mechanic and he knows what he is talking about. Once I start my new job I will be commuting quite a distance so I may buy a beater car to keep the miles off this truck as I save up money to set her up as my weekend adventure toy. I don't plan to do anything too extreme with her. Mostly hauling little toys like kayaks, camping gear, and maybe a bike. Looking forward to seeing how your build goes.

 

Welcome to TW man. Nice intro/first post. I think it'll be a good experience.

Do you own a Chilton by chance?